Seven U.S. Marines were killed in two separate attacks west of Baghdad, where American forces are trying to seal a major infiltration route for foreign fighters, the military said. Their deaths pushed the U.S. military death toll in Iraq past 1,800, according to a report of The Associated Press. At least 25 American service members have been killed in Iraq since July 24 _ all but two in combat. The Iraqi Defense Ministry said Tuesday that since the beginning of April, more than 2,700 Iraqis _ about half of them civilians _ had been killed in insurgency-related incidents. Six of the U.S. Marines were killed Monday in Haditha, 220 kilometers (140 miles) northwest of Baghdad. The seventh Marine died Monday in a suicide car bombing in Hit, 80 kilometers (50 miles) southeast of Haditha.
